Provisional results in Germany’s election confirm that mainstream conservatives led by Friedrich Merz won Germany's national election, while a far-right party surged to become the nation’s second-largest.

Germany’s center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) is set to return to power with the far-right Alternative for Germany as second-largest party, exit polls show, after snap elections dominated by concerns over immigration,

Maps show how every district in Germany voted. The conservative Christian Democrats have won the most seats while the far-right AfD placed second.

German opposition leader Friedrich Merz’s conservatives have won a lackluster victory in a national election Sunday, projections show.

Alternative for Germany (AfD) is now on course to win 20.5% of the vote, according to latest projections - but there is no way Friedrich Merz will work with it because of a long-standing political taboo against working with the far right, known as a Brandmauer - a firewall.

Exit polls show the center-right Christian Democratic Union party leading, with the AfD party heading towards the strongest showing of the far-right since World War II.

Millions of Germans are voting Sunday to determine who will control the country’s government, with Germany’s center-left Christian Democratic Union (CDU) expected to garner the biggest vote share—and the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) projected to nab a historic number of votes after garnering the endorsement of billionaire Elon Musk.

Polls are open across Germany as the world’s third largest economy chooses a new leader to guide it through an era of febrile immigration debates and souring relations with Washington.